Abnégation paternelle
Peu après la mort de son père, Alain Lefrançois décide de se raconter par lettre à son fils, Jean-Paul. Il lui parle de la vie de ses grands-parents, gens de la haute bourgeoisie, de son métier, qui le satisfait, et de sa vie conjugale, qui n’est qu’une demi-réussite. Au rappel de récentes disputes familiales relatives à la succession, il remonte à la période de ses études de droit à Poitiers, de sa mobilisation, de son mariage ; il évoque ses réactions lorsqu’il apprit qu’il allait être père. Enfin, Lefrançois en arrive, « malgré sa répugnance », à parler de son adolescence et de sa jeunesse. Celle-ci cache un lourd secret.
Paternal abnegation
Shortly after the death of his father, Alain Lefrançois decides to reveal himself in a letter to his son, Jean-Paul. He talks about the life of his grandparents, people from the upper middle class, about his trade, which satisfies him, and about his married life, which is only a half success. Recalling recent domestic disputes regarding his father’s inheritance, he goes back to the period when studied law in Poitiers, was mobilized, and married. He recalls his reaction when he learned he was going to be a father. Finally, Lefrançois, “despite his reluctance”, comes to talk about his adolescence and youth. They hide a dark secret.